Lom©: Yamako Soungalo Soulama successfully defended his unique doctoral thesis in Industrial Engineering on June 5, 2025, at the University of Lom©, Togo. His work focused on the theme: Integration of renewable energies into an equipment design approach for agrifood SMEs in West African countries. The jury, convinced by the quality of his work, awarded him the distinction "Very Honorable."

According to Burkina Information Agency, Mr. Soulama defended his thesis before a jury of eminent lecturer-researchers and researchers in industrial engineering. His research addresses critical issues in African public policies, providing an overview of industrial engineering in the agri-food sector's development in West Africa. He emphasized that energy and technological factors are limiting the development of the agri-food sector in West African countries. His study proposes integrating renewable energies into the design of agri-food equipment to contribute to sustainable development in the agri-food processing sector.

Mr. Soulama's innovative approach was validated in the field through literature reviews, field surveys, and an analysis of practices in socio-technical networks of renewable energies. Based on the data collected, he developed two tools for a renewable energy-oriented design approach for agri-food equipment. The first tool is the Analysis of Technological Solutions for Energy Saving (ASTEE), and the second is the design rules oriented towards sociotechnical networks of renewable energies, known as "Design For Renewable Energy Sociotechnical Network (DFRE SN)."

This new scientific approach, integrating socio-technical stakeholders, led to the design and manufacture of an ATESTA forced convection dryer and a solar mill. These devices were tested by agri-food industrial units in Burkina Faso and Togo, showcasing the practical application and validation of his research findings.